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COS 422: Theological Heritage IV: Wesleyan Movement Course of Study, June 29-July 4, 2020

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COS 422: Theological Heritage IV: Wesleyan Movement Course of Study, June 29-July 4, 2020 COS 422: Theological Heritage IV: Wesleyan Movement Course of Study, June 29-July 4, 2020 Contact Information: Dr. Jared Maddox Telephone: (206) 930-9051 Email: [email protected] Course Description: This course is a critical reflection on significant individuals, decisive events, and fundamental tenets of the Christian faith as found in the Wesleyan movement and in the development of United Methodism. Utilizing the categories of grace, faith, and holiness as focusing lenses, students will appropriate particulars of the Wesleyan heritage and will enter into the church’s ongoing task of interpreting, articulating, and embodying/enacting the gospel in contemporary life. Student Outcomes: This course seeks to enable each student to… 1. Understand and reflect on the movements, major figures, and events that led to the eighteenth century revivals, especially the lives and ministries of John and Charles Wesley. 2. Understand and articulate the vision of holiness and the theology of grace as it shaped the Wesleys, and the structures of the Methodist movement. 3. Identify and discuss significant theological and historical developments in American Methodism, including ordination and episcopacy. Required Reading: Carder, Kenneth. Living Our Beliefs: The United Methodist Way. Nashville: Discipleship Resources, 2009. Heitzenrater, Richard. Wesley and the People Called Methodists. 2nd Edition. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2013. Richey, Russell, Kenneth Rowe, and Jean Miller Schmidt. American Methodism: A Compact History. Nashville: Abingdon Press, 2012. Before Coming to Claremont: Because our time in class will be limited, all of the reading assignments and the following written assignments must be completed before the beginning of the course. The written assignments (Paper 1 and Paper 2) must be submitted to the instructor via email as a Microsoft Word Document on or before Friday, June 26, 2020. Students will be given the opportunity to revise both papers and resubmit them via email on or before Friday, July 17, 2020. 1 Formatting: Each paper should be double-spaced with one-inch margins and type-twelve, Times New Roman font. Citations are necessary following every quotation and when information is discussed that is not considered common knowledge. Students are not required to use a specific citation style, so long as they are consistent. A Note on Plagiarism: Do not plagiarize. If you are struggling to complete your pre-class assignment on time, please contact the professor and explain the situation. Persons caught plagiarizing will receive a zero on the assignment and be reported to the Director of the Course of Study program. Required Work: Assignment Category Percentage of Final Grade Pre-Class Assignment 60% Exam 15% Participation 25% Grading Scale: 100-90 A 89-80 B 79-70 C 69-60 D 59-0 F Grading Criteria: Every pre-class assignment will be graded according to the following criteria: 1. The student has answered the prompt to the best of their ability. 2. The student has demonstrated that they have read and engaged with the assigned material. 3. The student has sought to fix every typographical and grammatical error. 4. The student has properly cited their sources, thus avoiding intentional and unintentional plagiarism. 5. The student has written the required number of sentences and/or paragraphs. Schedule: Day Subjects Discussed Materials for Review Monday The context, upbringing, and early ministry of Heitzenrater, Chapters 1-3, John and Charles Wesley Section 1 of Paper 1 Tuesday Main facets of John Wesley’s theology and his Heitzenrater, Chapters 4-6, ministry after Aldersgate Epilogue, Paper 2 Wednesday Eighteenth and early nineteenth century Richey, Rowe, and Schmidt American Methodism (RRS), Introduction, Chapters 1-5, Section 2 of Paper 1 Thursday Late nineteenth and early twentieth century RRS, Chapters 6-10, Section 3 Methodism of Paper 1 Friday United Methodism until the present day. RRS, Chapters 11-12 Saturday Exam Everything 2 Pre-Class Assignment Paper 1: During the past 300 years, The United Methodist Church has transformed from a small movement into the second largest Protestant denomination in the United States. Paper 1 encourages each student to better understand and critically interact with important persons, places, structures, and decisions that have shaped and will continue to shape the church. Section 1: Describe or define 8 of the following 12 terms and names. Each description/definition should be 2-3 sentences, in your own words, and based on the required texts. 1. Arminianism 7. Aldersgate 2. “The Holy Club” 8. Field Preaching 3. The “Quietism” or “Stillness” 9. Classes and Bands Controversy 10. Foundery Society 4. George Whitefield 11. The General Rules 5. Peter Bӧhler 12. John Fletcher 6. Fetter Lane Society Section 2: Write a 3 to 4 paragraph essay on 1 of the 2 essay questions provided below. 1. What characterized the life and ministry of Francis Asbury and other early American itinerants? What structures and disciplinary requirements did they believe were necessary for American Methodism to transition from a society to a church? Which of these characteristics, structures, and disciplinary requirements do you still see within The United Methodist Church? 2. What role did Nathan Bangs play in the transformation of the Methodist Episcopal Church? Why did some Methodists believe that this transformation constituted an abandonment of the church’s founding ethos and discipline? Do you believe the church could have grown beyond a small denomination without a publishing house, missionary society, educational institutions, or increasing itinerant salaries? In your opinion, how have these changes affected the mission and ministry of the church? Section 3: Write a 3 to 4 paragraph essay on 1 of the 3 essay questions provided below. 1. Why was Bishop Andrew the central figure in the division of the Methodist Episcopal Church? How did the Committee of Nine and Plan of Separation seek to make the division as peaceable as possible? Do you believe an updated version of the Plan of Separation could succeed in diffusing the present-day tension over homosexual marriage and ordination? 2. How did race prevent representatives from the Methodist Episcopal Church and the Methodist Episcopal Church, South from reuniting before 1939? How did their eventual compromise, the formation of jurisdictions, incorporate regionalism and racial inequality 3 within the church? How much did you know about the Central Jurisdiction prior to this course? Does its formation affect how you view The United Methodist Church? 3. What were the primary contributions of the 1968-1972 Theological Study Commission? How did the 1988 statement “Doctrinal Standards and Our Theological Task” attempt to address concerns advanced by Good News, among other Methodist evangelicals? How do you think United Methodists can further reconcile this divide? Paper 2: In preparation for your examinations by District Committees and Conference Boards of Ordained Ministry, write 2 to 3 paragraph essays describing each of the six doctrines listed below (2-3 paragraph essays for each doctrine). Each essay should draw on the class readings and your experience as a pastor and theologian. 1. Repentance 2. Prevenient Grace 3. Justifying Grace/Justification 4. Regeneration (or the New Birth) 5. Sanctification/Sanctifying Grace 6. Christian Perfection In-Class Exam On Saturday, July 4, each student will receive a list of 6 questions, similar to those discussed during class, which will challenge them to integrate what they have learned with their ministry. Two of these questions must be answered and turned into the instructor by the end of class. Class notes, their pre-class assignment, and the assigned books can be utilized when answering the questions. Students may submit their answers via email or in person. DO NOT PLAGIARIZE. 4 .
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